Police chief to retire

Wednesday

Oct 15, 2008 at 12:01 AM

STOCKTON - Police Chief Tom Morris will retire at the end of October, after just eight months on the job, he said Tuesday.

Christian Burkin

STOCKTON - Police Chief Tom Morris will retire at the end of October, after just eight months on the job, he said Tuesday.
Morris, 52, said he is retiring over deficit-reducing furloughs affecting the department's top brass as well as other ranking city officials.
The 12-day furlough Morris faced would have reduced his roughly $175,000 annual salary by about 5.8 percent, according to Human Resources Department Director Diana Garcia.
Morris said his decision was not motivated by money but by principle.
"Money wasn't the issue," he said. "Just don't take away what I've already earned."
When Morris assumed leadership of the Police Department in March, he said he would stay for three to five years, barring any personal matter that might force his retirement. The furlough, and the resulting loss of income, is that personal matter, he said. He has to consider the effect on his family, he said.
"In all my years in law enforcement, they've taken a back seat," he said.
Since Morris took command, the Police Department has been challenged on the fiscal front. A city hiring freeze from which the Police and Fire departments once enjoyed immunity spread to both as the city's projected budget deficit grew.
The police budget, once one of few likely to hold fast as others were slashed, must now be cut by $11.4 million - a more than 10 percent reduction. And relations between the city and the department's rank and file have chilled over an ongoing salary dispute. None of that, Morris said, influenced his decision.
"It makes it harder, but I was hoping I could lead the department through this tough time," he said.
Morris said he tried to negotiate with the city to make staying palatable - offering to surrender vacation days - but was unsuccessful.
"I'm not looking for a way out," he said. "I'm looking for a way in."
Morris also said he understands that the city has to find a way to close its estimated $23.5 million budget deficit.
"These are tough times for the city, and they have to take tough actions," he said.

City Councilman Clem Lee, who had unsuccessfully called for a nationwide search for a candidate to replace the last chief, Wayne Hose, said he was disappointed by the news that Morris would retire. Lee said Morris had performed well.

"He became chief at a most difficult time, and it was just getting more difficult," Lee said. Both Lee, who is running for mayor, and Ann Johnston, his opponent, said the city should look outside Stockton for a replacement.

"We need to test our people who are interested against the very best that are out there," Lee said.

Johnston said: "We need to make sure that whoever we choose is going to give us the kind of service and longevity that we need. We can't have a revolving door in the Police Department."

Since Mayor Ed Chavez left the Police Department in November 2003 after 10 years as chief, there have been three police chiefs: Mark Herder, Wayne Hose and Tom Morris. Of those, Herder, at 28 months, had the longest tenure.

Born and raised in Stockton, Morris joined the department as a junior cadet in 1972 and became an officer in 1979. During his career, he has served as a patrol officer, SWAT team member, homicide investigator and in the department's Internal Affairs Division. He and his wife, Debbie, have two teenage children.

Morris was originally named by former City Manager Mark Lewis to replace Herder when he retired in 2006. But Hose, who reconsidered his own retirement when Herder's was announced, was appointed chief after Lewis was fired.

"This is how I hoped the succession would have been in the first place," Morris was quoted as saying at the time. "My day may come."

City Manager Gordon Palmer said Morris gave notice late last week, and Palmer has not had time to think about what the city will do to replace him, nor to consult with the council.

Morris said Assistant Chief Blair Ulring, second in rank, should succeed him.

Johnston said she believes Palmer should wait for the new mayor and City Council members to take office before selecting a new chief.

Morris said he plans to continue to work in law enforcement in San Joaquin County, but not at the head of another agency.